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Introduction | |
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Why You Need a Book Like This | |
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Principles of Data Interpretation, or, How to Keep From Getting Statistically Snookered | |
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Beware of Averages | |
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Follow the Money | |
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Beware of the Uncritical Acceptance of Convenient Conclusions | |
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Watch for Selectivity in the Data | |
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Show Me the Data! | |
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Beware of Nostalgia | |
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Beware of Causal Explanations from Correlational Data | |
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Be Aware of Whether or Not the Statistics Used Are Numbers or Rates (Percentages) | |
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Know Whether You're Dealing with Ranks or Scores | |
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Make Sure That the Statistic Used Is the Right One | |
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Ask How the Variable Is Defined | |
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Ask How the Variable Is Defined, and Then Ask What the Criterion Measure Is | |
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Differentiate Practical and Statistical Significance | |
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Look for Trends, Not Snapshots | |
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Beware of Trends | |
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Ask What the Consequences Are Even if the Interpretation of the Data Is True | |
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Beware of Changing Demographics | |
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Try to 'See Through' Graphs | |
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Beware of Big (Small) Numbers | |
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Beware of Generalizations | |
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Aspects of Achievement | |
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The Rise of Testing | |
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Types of Tests | |
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Other Indicators of Achievement | |
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Handling the Tough Questions | |
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How Come American Students Fall Farther behind Their International Peers the Longer They Stay in School? | |
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Why Are Test Scores Falling? | |
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How Come Private Schools Do So Much Better Than Public Schools? | |
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Why Don't We Have Vouchers So That the Money Could Follow the Child? | |
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Why Don't We Use Charter Schools as Laboratories for Innovation for the Rest of the System? | |
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Why Are We Throwing Money at the Schools? | |
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Why Are SAT Scores Still Falling? | |
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Why Don't Bright People Go into Teaching? | |
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With All the Talk about Standards and Accountability, Why Aren't Teachers and Principals Held Accountable? | |